Trump Returns to Crisis Over Kushner as White House Tries to Contain It -<br />By MAGGIE HABERMAN, GLENN THRUSH and JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVISMAY 27, 2017<br />President Trump headed home on Saturday to confront a growing political and legal threat, as his top aides tried to contain the fallout from reports<br />that his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is a focus of investigations into possible collusion between Russia and the president’s campaign and transition teams.<br />As reports emerged about investigators’ focus on Mr. Kushner, he and Ms. Trump discussed the possibility of having Donald F. McGahn II, the White House counsel, issue a statement denying<br />that Mr. McGahn had been contacted by federal officials about Mr. Kushner.<br />Reince Priebus, the White House chief of staff, and Stephen K. Bannon, the president’s chief strategist, also dropped off Mr. Trump’s trip early, in part to return to deal with the political furor over the Russia investigations<br />and the president’s decision to fire James B. Comey as F. B.I.<br />The White House canceled a presidential trip to Iowa in the coming days and was putting together a damage-control plan to expand the president’s legal team, reorganize his communications staff and wall off a scandal<br />that has jeopardized his agenda and now threatens to engulf his family.<br />White House aides were trying to assemble a powerhouse outside legal team<br />that they hoped would include seasoned Washington lawyers of the stature of Paul D. Clement, Theodore Olson or Brendan Sullivan, and they planned to introduce some of them to Mr. Trump as soon as this weekend.<br />Mr. Clinton retained a private legal team and established a separate office to handle questions about investigations, so<br />that the White House could preserve the image of governing and keep its primary focus on the president’s broader message.
